“Are we in agreement? The final tally is one full set of armor, three dozen bracers, three hundred arrows, six dozen bolts, half as much of the explosive variant for each, five lightning wings, and the remainder in general armaments?” The negotiations had taken an hour, but they’d finally reached a conclusion. Someone was taking down a list that would be sent to Daniel once it had been checked by him. Murdon snarled in relief as there was general agreement. Some had fought ardently against the smallest of allotments. Alost had almost physically beaten someone who had suggested they’d only need a hundred or so bolts and arrows combined.
There was a break then as the day’s meal was distributed and people rested from the surprisingly tiresome conversation. Murdon himself was weary as he knew that should have been the quickest matter to handle. He still had to hold an open forum on new powers! Who knew how long that could take? Then there was incorporating that into their strategy, seeing if there was anything extraordinary enough to reconsider changing what they were having Daniel make, and…
“Hmm. This is why I didn’t go for headman when we came here.” Lograve found him as he was lying down for a moment and spoke in his normal, whimsical way. “You know this will make you a Knight in shining armor? I suppose we’ll have to find you a proper maiden next.”
That made Murdon smile. “Finding a female draconoid out here would be another miracle. I don’t suppose you stumbled on one of them when you were busy pulling rare metal out of the earth?”
“Does it have to be one of those?” Lograve asked innocently. “I happen to know Tlara is single.”
Murdon laughed so hard he choked. There were a couple of people nearby who noticed, but they kept to their own business. “Don’t you dare. Gods. But she did prove herself with those wyverns. In some way, I owe her your life and she is not making it easy to forget that.”
“Yes, though in all seriousness we should ditch her once we get across the border. I don’t think she’s too trustworthy. Though, to be fair, she’s only tried to stab me in the back once.”
“Across the border. It seems like we’re so close now, even though we’re back to where we started.” Murdon was silent for a moment. “I almost killed that boy, Lograve. Now, he’s giving me armor that would take years to afford normally. What was I thinking?”
“You weren’t. No one was. It was the beginning of madness.”
“You had your head on straight. You were right about him.”
“Of course I was,” Lograve said, puffing out his chest. “That’s my job. Yours is to herd ringcats.”
“It’s been particularly trying today. I keep looking out for them. They, ehm, no, let’s leave it at that.” A look of understanding passed between them. Lograve didn’t even need to use Telepathy to know what he meant. Whoever the Tyrant plotting against Murdon was, it hadn’t been Heldren, and the fallen Hero had taken their true identity to his grave.
…
Evalyn had long ago regained the composure that she had lost during the dragon fight. She was a Bard. Even though she abhorred using negative Bardic powers, that didn’t mean she couldn’t cope when those relevant emotions naturally arose. Keeping herself grounded was an important part of maintaining the effectiveness of her powers. Not that anyone had asked, but she had been well experienced with hunting even before the Upswell, and was close to reaching level two without too much level disparity to correct. She was still afraid, of course, but the meeting today and the people in the village gave her hope.
Claire and Daniel’s situation still weighed on her. She’d tried to get them talking on the way, but Daniel had been withdrawn and Claire partially restricted under Quala’s care. Yesterday she’d learned she’d been successful, but also that it was over. At least, her part in it was. Quarrels like this were bad business for Bards, especially if both parties involved were friends. If it was between teammates, it would be cataclysmic due to how that would affect her powers. One of the teams she’d hunted with in Eido had been like that. She hadn’t been directly involved there either, but the underlying enmity sapped the strength of her music. Claire wasn’t her teammate though, and Evalyn wasn’t sure if Daniel still was. There were a lot of things Evalyn wasn’t sure about.
As far as the meeting itself, Evalyn had listened with interest though she knew she wouldn’t personally benefit. Daniel couldn’t make instruments. Even if they had a connection, there wasn’t a chance she was getting anything. It was still important to listen to where she would be assigned so she could prepare.
Another dragon. They were going to fight another dragon. Evalyn traded in stories just as much as she did coin, back when the Thormundz region had something resembling an economy. She knew the reputation those monsters had. If the survivors of Roost’s Peak thought the one they’d faced was horrifying, they didn’t know anything.
Terror. It was a word that failed to encompass what higher level dragons could do. Even the descriptions, warped as much as the proceedings of the meeting by repeated retelling, could not do it justice. It was worse than fear. It could completely immobilize, throw someone into a panic, or even kill in the worst circumstances. Any fully matured dragon could inflict this en masse. This hadn’t come up in the meeting yet, but it was something she was listening out for. Valor Song could provide resistance to it and she would need to speak up. She couldn’t cleanse the condition or guarantee that she could resist it herself, but it had to be brought up.
During the break, she thought about visiting Daniel. She’d seen him smile just before he flew up and knew his spirit wasn’t completely crushed, but she wanted to make sure he was doing ok. Claire was a completely different matter. Even though Quala hadn’t told her what she’d been doing, Evalyn could guess. There was no way she could help her, and in hindsight what she’d tried to do might have made it worse.
Instead, she found Thomas and they talked. He only stared inappropriately at her a few times. It was a weakness of the Cleric’s, she’d noticed, but not bad enough that she needed to address it. The interest might have come to something if they weren’t already so familiar. Evalyn was keen to her weaknesses too, and couldn’t help but find how hard the Cleric tried to be smooth humorous.
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Lunch was so spent in idle conversation. With Thomas that meant gossiping and he kept bringing up rumors of budding relationships. The intent behind the conversation was obvious, though she humored him. Thomas may deal in secrets, but just like his looks he had a hard time hiding his feelings.
There were other things mentioned, of course. The upcoming battle, and how close both were to level two. There hadn’t been enough time to commit every advancement potential they’d earned until the village, and with such an important battle coming up, it was worth pursuing now. The only topic avoided was Daniel. Thomas had seen her talking to Claire, but only after she’d said her piece.
It was no major deduction to realize the Cleric felt guilty about destroying Daniel’s Focus. That amounted to a major assault for most people. To someone who devoutly worshipped the Octyrrum, it bordered on sin. His bias towards Daniel was understandable, though he could have let Quala chastise her about helping Claire escape without also joining in. At least he was eating with her now, and not bringing up the argument despite how much he’d disagreed. In fact, his avoidance of the affair during that meal made Evalyn consider if she had interfered too much.
…
“We are going to table the discussions on newly developed powers for now,” Murdon said to recommence the meeting. “I wish to instead open the forum to discuss strategy. With broad plans worked out, we can make minor adjustments for individual powers later. It will also let us get some damned sleep tonight. Alright. Lograve?”
The Arcanist resummoned his illusion, frowning at the repeated cost in mana but otherwise kept it going. “Our strategy heavily depends on myself and Murdon. I will freeze a portion of the lake to allow us more room to maneuver. I can construct shelter for myself, though if others can protect me that will allow me to affect a greater area. Murdon will act like an arrogant bastard and try to be the center of attention. I think giant glowing armor should help.”
“We’ll be breaking up the rest into squads,” Murdon cut in with just a hint of aggravation. “Ideally, we’ll be keeping the groups you’ve been training with roughly similar. Those that don’t have one, such as those in the garrison of Roost’s Peak, will either be assigned into one or into support groups, which we will also need to discuss.”
“What? You’re taking us to fight that thing?” One of those from Roost’s Peak broke above the small uproar that started from that seemingly innocent statement. “We already fought one! I thought we were going to be guarding the villagers!”
This time, Murdon’s voice alone wasn’t enough to regain order. One of the headmen with a concussive power had to set it off above the village and use that disruption to shake sense back into the people. The draconoid nodded to Aszkash, the only gestalt to number among the headmen, and addressed the people’s concerns.
“No one wants this fight. If there was any other way we would take it instead. You have suffered through this crucible once.” At first, there was hope in the eyes of those who had protested. Murdon sounded sympathetic, right up until he brought the hammer down. “That gives you no excuse. You are the ones blessed by the Octyrrum, given the power to fight for its cause and protect its people. When there is a need, it is your duty to answer its call. Some of you will be posted to protect the villagers, but only through consideration of who is needed the least in this fight, not who has the least experience. If you want to protest, you may do so.” He paused for just a second, enough to let them draw in the breath needed. “But you won’t be leaving with us. My word on that is final. It is what I said from the very beginning. Those with power must contribute.”
The words died in the belligerents’ throats. Murdon had the full backing of every level 3 in the region, and he was the single strongest combatant. Even Gadriel, who’d pulled off a stunning victory against Heldren Storm, wouldn’t be able to defeat someone of Murdon’s skill and experience. Tomorrow Murdon would have very potent armor, just the kind of thing to make him untouchable. He wasn’t a Tyrant, that had been made painfully clear, but his rule was still absolute.
“Now, to the dragon. Our priority will be knocking it out of the sky, though we should be careful to avoid dropping it into the lake. Even with the ice, there’s no guarantee those below level 3 would survive lightning arcing through it.”
“My ice likely won’t survive the impact if it falls from too high up as well,” Lograve pointed out. “It’ll need to hit land, or be dropped from close to the ground.”
“I’ll hit whatever you need me to from range.” Alost stepped up. He was one of the ones who had pointedly not commented on Murdon’s expectation to fight the lightning dragon. “I, as well as any you care to place me with. So long as this dragon does not have Regeneration, we’ll tear up its wings.”
“You’ll have that opportunity,” Murdon confirmed. “Would Jonus be here he would command our archers. In his absence, I trust them to you. As far as positioning, we will need to wait until the teams have solidified.”
“Better to have all the pieces on the board before we start playing,” Lograve added.
An older human woman stepped forward from where a cluster of gestalt were conversing in their own way. “We have a concern,” she said.
“Translation power?” Murdon asked, and she nodded.
“You all are so worked up about what we can do. But what of the dragon? Its roar?” Somewhere in the crowd, Evalyn stiffened. The woman, one of the few Druids in attendance, walked into the center ring. She tapped the center of the lake with her heel. “This space is cramped enough that it will affect us all, and we cannot simply plug our ears!”
“What?” Lograve looked confused. “It’s a sonic-based ability. Why wouldn’t that work?”
“Fought many dragons have you?”
“Three.”
“Well, fine,” she conceded. “But you didn’t do it right! And you’re still wrong. They know why.” She pointed to the gestalt who were now probably watching her. Only one had taken humanoid form so it was hard to tell. “Ges- uh, hmm. You! Do that thing.”
“What?” The woman tapped her head. “Oh. How did she know about that?” Lograve asked quietly to Murdon as he used Telepathy. Murdon just smiled. He knew Festra wasn’t a headwoman and had only just awakened her class despite her age. That didn’t mean she couldn’t run circles around anyone through sheer life experience. Lograve’s eyes went from Festra to the small group of gestalt before nodding. “That is enlightening. I will.”
“What is it?” Murdon asked.
“The roar of a matured dragon can bypass sound as a requirement,” Lograve said. “Fascinating. I suppose not enough people fight them to have it be common knowledge. Hmm, yes, thank you. Uhm, who are you?”
“Festra. You are welcome.” She started walking back to her previous position.
“Wait, what do you suggest to counter the terror condition?” Murdon asked quickly. The humor he was taking from Lograve’s flustering was quickly fading as Festra’s nature was turned on him.
“How should I know? That’s your job.”
Quala picked up the conversation graciously. “With luck, I can resist the effect passively. For the rest of our people, present company included, that will be far more difficult if not impossible. Worse, I fear a monster with significantly advanced wisdom and intelligence will know to reserve that ability until its disruption will most affect our forces. There are certainly those of us with powers that can aid in mental resistance, but most are either single target or do not last long. All of these powers would be unreliable in the face of a level six opponent. There is one exception.”
“Ah. I take your meaning.” Murdon, Lograve, and a handful of others looked in trepidation while most in the audience just waited for someone to explain it to them. Powers and their trends among the classes were mostly common knowledge, but only those who studied, commanded, or cared about how conditions were resisted and removed would have broad enough knowledge to reach the same conclusion themselves. Evalyn also knew what they were discussing but for none of those reasons. With hesitation, Murdon spoke loud enough to be heard a block away. “I need every Bard in front of me, right now.”